The Uncharted Zeus Pro Jump Starter is a compact emergency battery pack that’ll jump almost any vehicle, hold a charge for a long time, and has saved me numerous times over several years. It’s a great piece of kit. Here’s how I tested it and why I recommend it to anyone heading anywhere…
Side Note: I’ve been a fan of Uncharted Supply Co. for a while, and here’s why: There are a LOT of “brands” that simply rebadge low-quality catalog items or throw a few low-quality things in a kit and call it “survival” gear.
And while some of Uncharted’s stuff leans into that category if you’re looking for hardcore off-road recovery gear, they generally do a great job with their first aid kits and survival bug-out bags. I keep their First Aid Plus kit in my rig, and only had to add a few OTC med and extra bandage sizes to make it complete.
The Zeus is definitely in the high quality category. I’ve had it since Fall 2023 and have used it sporadically since.
“Sporadically” might seem like an odd boast when it comes to testing gear, but that’s a key metric for something like this. It’s not something you use every day, but it needs to be ready to go at any moment.
It’s not always a great idea to keep a battery pack topped off, at least in terms of long-term battery cell health, but for something like this that’s exactly what you need to do – hold a charge indefinitely, and be ready to go even if it’s months or a year after you’ve last charged it.
On a full charge, I have used it to jump two different vehicles multiple times each. In fact, the only time it didn’t work was when one of the batteries had dropped to about 20% of its cold cranking amps capacity. Which means it was basically that battery was a goner and nothing could save it.
Otherwise, it’s been flawless, even in freezing temps. Uncharted claims it’ll jump 7L gas and 8L diesel engines thanks to a 1000A peak instantaneous output, which is more than enough for any common overland vehicle…even if you left ran your lights and fan all night and left your comms on and charged your phones and everything, too.
The only tricky bit with using it is that once you plug the cables in, you have just 30-60 seconds to start your car. In reality that’s plenty of time, but if you get sidetracked at all, you’ll need to unplug it then reconnect it and try again.
To be clear, this isn’t a charger, it’s a jump starter. It’s immediate, no need to sit there and keep it plugged in – just attach it and start your car.
The only thing I wish was a little bit better was the length of the cables. They’re short, which makes it a very compact unit that fits into a small case you can shove almost anywhere (like under a seat).
But it made jumping my Ford Transit camper van a little bit tricky since that vehicle’s battery is under the driver’s seat and there is no fixed negative terminal under the hood.
The Zeus pro also has a built-in LED flashlight, and several USB ports for charging your phone, tablet, etc. It has a 20,000 man capacity, which is more than enough to jumpstart multiple cars before needing to be recharged. Or one car multiple times. Or your iPhone from 0-100% five times.
My only other note would be to use a high-output adapter to charge it…a basic (or cheap generic) wall plug will take a loooooong time to top this off.
And as a safeguard, I’d recommend setting a quarterly reminder to pull it out, charge some devices with it, then top it off again, just to be safe. In my use, it held enough charge to jump a car for many months at a time, but it will drain eventually, so it’s better to keep a schedule so it’s ready when you need it.
If I’m being honest, I slack at this, and it’s still been reliable and holds more than enough charge to jump by SUV, camper van, and neighbors’ vehicles.
For $169, it’s affordable peace of mind that can not only keep you going, but might just help you help someone else out of a bad situation, too. Available direct and on Amazon.
Worth nothing, they also offer a combo model with built-in air compressor, but it has slightly less (15,000mAh) capacity.
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